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LIBERALITY IN RELIGION, 



TAKEN FROM THE 



christian's magazine, 



BY THE REy. Dr. MASON, OF NEW-YORK, 



TOGETHER WITH 



An inquiry into the Scripture meaning of char- 
ity," extracted from the writings of the 



Rev. Dr. WITHERSPOON, 



PORTLAND, 

Published and sold by A.LYMAN & Co. Insurance- 
buildings, Exchange-street. 






j. m'kowh, printer, — 1811. 



LIBERALITY IN RELIGION, 



A WRITER of celebrity ,* has said, 
that where " men are without some 
fundamental and scientific principles to 
resort to* they are liable to have their 
understandings played upon by cant 
phrases and unmeaning terms, of which 
every party in> every country, possess a 
vocabulary. We appear astonished when 
we see the multitude lecl away by 
sounds ; but we should remember, that 
if sounds work miracles, it is always 
upon ignorance. The influence of 
names is in exact proportion to the want 
of knowledge." 

As it is the truth of these remarks, 
which gives a point to their severity, it 
would be some consolation, were they 
applicable to the multitude only. But the 
same foible, though in a less degree, is 
discernible in men, who are not to be 
ranked with the multitude ; and to 
whom, if we cannot yield our confidence, 
we may not deny our respect. The in- 
fluence of fashion is so subtile and so 
imperious ; the levity of social inter- 

* Dr. Paley. ^C Control Number 



tmp96 031662 



Liberality in Religion. 3 

course is so adverse to reflection ; dissent 
from the circling opinion is, for the most 
part, so ungraciously received ; a fling, 
whether in jest or earnest, is so conven- 
ient a substitute for fact ; and a popu- 
lar epithet, without expense either of 
thought or knowledge, is so expeditious 
a mode of determining controversies, 
which otherwise would be of stiff debate, 
that the judgment is surprised through 
the imagination ; and the mind is hurried 
into its decisions without firmness to 
resist, or leisure to pause. He who has 
access to that sort of company, which 
wears the reputation of intelligence, and 
does not recollect to have seen this course 
of things, has made a bad use of his 
eyes or his memory. How roughly in- 
dividuals, communities, and even truth 
itself is often handled by such summary 
sentences, every writer on logic or ethics 
accounts it his duty to show, The 
design of the following observations is not 
so much to dwell on the general evil of the 
practice, as, on the one side, to repel an op- 
probrium, and, on the other, to sift a claim, 
which it has been employed to sanction. 
From the present state of society, we 
look back on the intolerance of former 



I 

4 Liberality in Religion. 

ages with a surprise, which does honor 
to humanity : but at the same time, it is 
to be feared, with a loftiness of self-com- 
placency, which proclaims that the re- 
trospect administers as much food to 
our vanity, as to our benevolence. The 
pendulum of fashion vibrating in morals, 
as in dress, from an extreme point to its 
opposite ; we are now required to open 
the bosom of charity to every class of 
religious tenets, if we hope to be en- 
rolled among liberal Christians, or to 
escape the pains and penalties decreed 
against bigots. As revolutions seldom 
happen in but one thing at a time, this 
exchange of feeling appears to have been 
accompanied with an exchange of prin- 
ciple ; and to have included a large 
portion of the creed of our fathers in the 
same proscription with their sternness of 
temper. So that what bishop Butler 
said of Christianity, may truly be said 
of orthodoxy : — "It is come — to be 
taken for granted, by many persons, that 
orthodoxy is not so much as a subject 
of inquiry ; but that it is now, at length, 
discovered to be fictitious. And ac- 
cordingly they treat it as if, in the present 
age, this were an agreed point among all 



Liberality in Religion. 5 

people of discernment ; and nothing re- 
mained but to set it up as a principal 
subject of mirth and ridicule, as it were 
bv way of reprisals, for its having so long 
interrupted the pleasures of the world." 
Or if dislike to principles once held 
sacred by the most enlightened and ex- 
cellent of mankind, has not gone all this 
length, it has, at least, thrown them into 
the rubbish of obsolete prejudices. Zeal 
for their purity and propagation is sup- 
planted by a sort of community of per- 
suasions ; in which every one is not 
only privileged to assert his own right, 
while he lives in peace with his neigh- 
bors, but to demand their aid in repulsing 
an invader. Whoever shall dare to con- 
demn the opinions of one, is the enemy 
of ?\) the rest : he must be shunned as 
an ♦intruder into the sanctuary of con- 
science ; as a stranger to religious civil- 
ity and liberal refinement, and unworthy 
of any rank but that which philosophical 
Christianity has assigned to the bigot. 

All this looks grand and magnanimous ; 
and, no doubt, has its effect ; especially 
upon youthful, undisciplined, and timid 
minds. But if it have more of show than 
of realitv ; if it be as intolerant in its own 



6 Liberality in Religion. 

way as any thing which it calls bigotry ; 
and if, under the pretext of oblations to 
charity, it sacrifice the truth of God and 
the eternal interests of men upon the 
altar of practical infidelity ; we cannot 
turn away from it with too open disgust., 
nor hold it in too deep abhorrence. 

One of the things which first strike 
a critical observer, is the indefiniteness 
of the ideas attached to the terms "lib- 
eral" and " bigoted." It is easy to 
couple them with a man or a principle ; 
and to extol or decry accordingly : and 
few are so loud in their panegyric or 
abuse, as those who do both by signal. 
But still, what is your liberality ? Is it 
measured by any standard, or confined 
within any limits ? If not, for ought I 
can see, it is an attempt to abolish ail 
intellectual and moral distinctions.* If 
it is measured and limited— by what 
rule ? By the word of God ? Then you 
are bound to ascertain its sense, and to 
oppose every opinion which contradicts 
it ; or else you must contradict your- 
self: for a rule which you do not apply, 
is no rule at all.— By your own good 
pleasure, or your conviction of right ? 
Then you assume the office of dictator 



Liberality in Religion, 7 

as much as any man to whom you im- 
pure that arrogance ; and if you intend 
to m pluck the mote out of his eye, 5 ' 
you must begin with taking " the beam 
out of your own. "•— By your particular 
associates ? Every sect under heaven 
does the same. The Arminian calls 
the Calvinist a bigot ; the Socinian ap- 
plies the epithet to the advocate of the 
atonement, and chants forth his own 
liberality* the deist pities the slavish 
being who believes in revelation ; and 
the atheist smiles at the " prejudices" 
of the deist. — Or are you liberal be- 
cause you think and speak well of those 
who think and speak well of you ? So 
did the publicans, and so do thousands 
with whom you would not wish to be 
suspected of any connexion. If your 
" liberality takes a middle path between 
the contractedness of some men, and 
the licentiousness of others, so that while 
yeu cherish the primary interests of re- 
ligion, you overlook the minor differen- 
ces among its professors, and embrace 
them as brothers upon the broad ground 
of the common Christianity," you are 
indeed more definite, but not less em- 
barrassed. For it is impossible n<st to 



8 Liberality in Religion. 

perceive, first, that your very medium 
implies a boundary which you may^ot 
pass ; and consequently, that your lib- 
erality is commendable, not for its own 
sake, but as it is controlled by truth : 
and secondly, that the character of your 
liberality must be fixed by the relative 
value of those points which it surrenders 
under the title of " minor differences." 
Until this be settled, ygu can have no 
permission to glory in being liberal ; 
and to bestow contemptuous appella- 
tions upon those who will not go in 
your train : for you may take credit to 
yourself for that which shall turn out to 
be a crime. 

Our next inquiry, then, respects these 
" minor differences." A soft sound with 
dreaded sense ! For, unless the writer 
grievously err, the characteristic of the 
liberality now in vogue, is to ask noth- 
ing more than a general profession of 
Christianity ; and to refer all its modifi- 
cations to the head of " minor differen- 
ces;" which, in the affair of Christian 
and ministerial fellowship, should make 
no difference at all. If, therefore, one 
of these liberal Christians shall explain 
away the whole faith of the church of God 



Liberality in Religion. 9 

concerning the new birth — if another 
shall teach the dogma of universal salva- 
tion for men, and, if he please, for devils 
too — if a third shall give up the plenary 
inspiration of the scriptures — if a fourth 
shall argue against a particular provi- 
dence — if a fifth shall deny the influen- 
ces, or dispute the being, of the Holy 
Spirit — if a sixth shall abjure the sacri- 
fice and deity of our Lord Jesus Christ : 
all this, instead of diminishing confi- 
dence, or communion, is to be a matter 
of compromise. Every one retains his 
own views without contradiction. The 
generic term " Chistian" belongs alike 
to all : and he who refuses to recognize 
their Christanity, must be branded as a 
bigot. 

Three questions arise out of this sub- 
ject : 

First, How far such liberality is con- 
sistent with the love of truth ? 

Discrimination belongs to the essence 
of useful research. The man who trans- 
poses cause and effect ; who classes 
phenomena without regard to their na- 
ture ; or who huddles together a mass 
of incoherent facts, will never enlighten 
the community, nor obtain the suffra- 



10 Liberality in Religion. 

ges of its well informed members. They 
all agree that to encourage such blun- 
derers, would be to banish knowledge 
and science from the world. The effect 
of such a chaos is the same, whether it 
be produced by individual folly, t>r by 
a sort of pic-nic collection, in which 
numbers contribute their respective 
shares, and fairly club a medley of con- 
tradictions. Why should that which is 
absurd in every thing else, be rational 
in religion? It is evident that within 
the domain of this idol-liberality, there 
is not a spot on which truth can rear her 
temple or plant . her foot. Because 
truth of every kind, under every form, 
and in every degree, is necessarily and 
eternally intolerant of falsehood. And 
therefore to exempt from challenge a 
host of discordant sentiments, and that 
on the most interesting topics, is to 
wave the rights of truth to the whole 
extent of the exemption. It takes for 
granted, either that the truth on these 
topics is not discernable ; or that it is 
not worth the trouble of contention. 
The first of these assumptionsis a libel 
on the word of God ; and the second 
on his wisdom. They who thus a- 
bandon the claims of truth, by putting 



Liberality in Religion. 11 

them virtually on a level with the claims 
of error, are not her friends ; and the 
alternative is plain. 

The next question is, How this liber- 
ality of theirs consists with fidelity to our 
Lord Jesus Christ? 

He was himself the great witness to 
the truth ; and has commanded all his foL 
lowers to imitate his example. Not one 
instance can be pointed out, of his coun- 
tenancing, in the slightest manner, a 
Catholicism which treats with nearly 
equal regard all opinions and doctrines 
that shelter themselves under his name. 
He has charged us to beware of " fake 
prophets, who come in sheep's clothing, 
. but in wardly are ravening wolves. ' ' And 
the apostle, who lay on his breast and 
imbibed most of his tenderness, has 
written, " if there pome any unto you 
and bring not this doctrine," (the doc- 
trine of Christ) " receive him not into 
your house, neither bid him Godspeed, 
for he that biddeth him God speed, is 
partaker of his evil deeds," What the 
doctrine of Christ is, can be determined 
only from his word. But the liberality 
which is now on its trial, draws its chief 
praise from never determining that- point 



12 Liberality in Religion, 

at all. Here, then, are two divine pre* 
eepts of which it mocks the authority by 
frustrating the application. Who is to 
seize the u ravening wolf," if it is a set- 
tled rule in theological etiquette to look 
no further than the " sheep's skin?" 
Who shall chase the " Antichrist" from 
his door, if it be unmannerly and boor- 
ish to ask what u doctrine" he brings? 
There cannot exist a doubt, that if the 
Lord Jesus himself were to descend with 
his apostle, in veiled glory, and mingle a- 
gain with men, one such sentence apiece 
as are quoted above, would expel them 
both from the circle of " liberal" Chris- 
tians ! That evangelical hero, Paul, took 
the elders of Ephesus to record that he 
was " pure from the blood of all men." 
Why ? Because he had thrown the reins 
on the neck of his # charity ; had repre- 
sented the precious truths of the gospel 
and their opposites as well qualified to 
harmonize ; and had refrained to enforce 
particular views of doctrine, lest he 
should infringe liberty of judgment, or 
the maxims of good breeding ? No I 
But because he " had not shunned to 
declare the whole counsel of God." 
And they who do, must go to their Judge 



Liberality in Religion. 13 

with " blood-guiltiness" in their con- 
sciences. Let this be solemnly pondered 
by those ministers who, having had the 
" form of sound words," have been 
carried away by the current of a spuri- 
ous liberality ; have gradually dropped 
the peculiar doctrines of Christianity ; 
and now, through fear of offense or the 
ridicule of singularity, avoid them alto- 
gether. So that the utmost which can 
be said of them is, that if they do not 
preach the gospel; they do not preach 
against it — -i. e. that their discourses, 
in every thing, affecting the salvation of 
a sinner, contain— just nothing at all— 
, Horesco refer ens ! Well may their " flesh 
tremble," when they think, if ever they 
think, of the interrogatories, which await 
them at the bar of Jesus Christ, concern- 
ing his suppressed truth ; his abused gos- 
pel ; his forgotten cross : and all chis, for 
the feather of being thought " liberal," 
by men who give themselves no trouble 
to " escape the wrath to come." 

The //zf/W question is, How far the 
liberality under review consists with 
real charity to men ? 

The treating as non-essentials and 
matters of accommodation, all different 
2 



14 Liberality in Religion, 

ces which may occur within the pre- 
cincts of tha-i general term " Christian, 5 ' 
is not to be justified but upon the prin- 
ciple, that such differences cannot endan- 
ger the " saving of the soul." Is this 
true? One man believes and teaches 
that the Spirit of the living God must 
change a sinner's heart, and unite him 
to the Lord Jesus, as the Lord his right- 
eousness and strength, before he can be 
a Christian, and possess a " good hope 
through grace;" another man laughs at 
all this as fanaticism, and maintains that 
nothing more is necessary to constitute a 
Christian than a rational assent to thetiuth 
of divine revelation, and a good moral life. 
One man worships the Lord Jesus Christ 
as his Savoir and his God ; another 
represents him as a mere creature ; it 
may be " a frail, fallible, peccable man." 
One rejoices in the sacrifice of Christ, 
by which he is redeemed from the curse 
of the law ; and another reputes the 
whole doctrine of redemption through 
the blood of Jesus to be an old wife's 
fable. Here are flat contradictions : and 
contradictions of such a nature, that, if 
what is usually termed the orthodox 
side, be true, the opposite involves noth- 
ing less than the eternal perdition of 



Liberality in Religion, 15 

of those who hold it. Yet all these men 
call themselves Christians. Now it is 
' clear as the meridian sun, that the word 
of God cannot stand with both sides ; 
but that the one or the other " has made 
him a liar ;" and it is no less clear that 
he who makes God a liar, by not receiv- 
ing his testimony concerning his Son, 
is under condemnation. It follows, that 
they who enlist themselves under the 
banner of the prevailing liberality, either 
by teaching that there is nothing in the 
doctrines of the different sects called 
Christian, which ought to excite con- 
troversy ; or by professing their charity 
for those who hold these most detestable 
opinions ; or by maintaining a studied 
reserve toward the peculiarities of the 
meditorial plan, are leagued in a con- 
spiracy against the " glorious gospel" 
of the " great God our Savior," and 
those eternal interests of men, from 
which the faith of it is inseparable. De- 
ceived by this traffic of complaisances, 
especially when they see the ministers of 
religion among the most active in pro- 
moting it ; many rest in the conclusion, 
that it is of no consequence what they 
believe, if their character in society be 



16 Liberality in Religion, 

fair, " Searching the Scriptures," for 
the " words of eternal life," becomes 
an antiquated employment. Occasional 
misgivings of conscience are relieved by 
the soothing imagination that we are all 
Christians, and that is enough,. Gross 
ignorance of the gospel thickens apace, 
in a clime illuminated by its broadest 
sunshine. The barriers which ought to 
divide the church from the world, are 
swept away, and every trait of discrim- 
ination effaced. ' ' What fellowship hath 
righteousness with unrighteousness ? 
and what communion hath light with 
darkness ? and what concord hath Christ 
with Belial ? or what part hath he that 
believeth with an infidel ?" is a tale of oth- 
er times. And thus, in a " Jand of Bibles, 
" which cannot be opened without the 
lightning of God's reprobation of their 
fqlly flashing in their faces, miserable sin- 
ners unjustified, unwashed, unsanctified, 
are praising each other's Christianity ! 
The delusion is often fostered by the 
very men, whose office should impel them 
to counteract and destroy it. And there 
is too sad reason to fear that the loss of 
the soul is the first thing which awakens 
numbers from their dream. Yes, they 



Liberality in Religion. 17 

" die in their iniquity ; but*- — but 
" their blood shall be required at the 
hand" of those pastors who " warned 1 y 
them not. That liberality, therefore, 
which lets all sorts of opinions pass under 
the large cloak of " Christian ; ?> or 
which forbears to urge, without qualifi- 
cation, the peculiar topics of the gospel, 
deserves another epithet than " charita- 
ble." Of charity it has nothing but 
the abused name. Instead of executing 
tier benign functions, it comes with 
perfidy, and cruelty, and death ? to the 
souls of men. 

If we look a little closer at this affeced 
liberality, we shall perceive that, exclu- 
sively of its tendency, the very attribute 
which it vaunts the loudest, universal 
tolerance., has no existence. 

The proof is short. No men are more 
impatient *£ contradiction in the affairs 
of common life, than these liberal think- 
ers ; no men contend for their political 
Views with fiercer zeal, or deeper ani- 
Mssity. Why ? Because human spec- 
ulations are more certain than the truth 
of God ? or civil arrangements of higher 
moment than the concerns of a future 
world ? That cannot be pretended. 



18 Liberality in Religion. 

Why, then, do the bosoms of the these 
" liberal" philosophers swell with rage 
against a political opponent ? And sure- 
ly no men- can pursue others with more 
contempt and rancor, than do they 
whomsoever they are pleased to stigma- 
tize as bigots. Yet, what have the big- 
ots done ? By the nature of the case, 
they are under no obligation to be as 
condescending to a' s liberal 1 ' man, as 
this latter to them. He is bound by his 
profession to be as charitable to a bigot 
as to any other. , But the contrary is 
true. " Bigot" is a brand of infamy; 
not less than " heretic" or " infidel," 
and quite as freely applied, Serious as 
the subject is, one can hardly forbear 
smiling at the mistakes which we are 
apt to commit in estimating our own 
characters. The man who supposed 
himself inaccessible to flatter ^ was no* 
aware, till his acuter friend detected 
him, that this supposition was precisely 
the point in which his vanity was cen- 
tred, and was assailable by the flatterer. 
As little do they, who plume themselves 
on their freedom from bigotry, suspect 
that their " liberality" is the point on 
which thej betray the very temper they 



Liberality in Religisn. 19 

denounce in others. Touch this dar- 
ling of theirs, and you will find that they 
have as much bigotry as other folk, 
There are no more decided bigots on 
earth, than those who are bigoted to lib- 
erality. The fact is, that modern liber- 
ality is of the same kind and spirit with 
the old heathen tolerance. One was at 
perfect liberty to worship his calf, pro- 
vided another might burn incense to the 
queen of heaven. And thus Baal, and 
Jupiter, and Moloch, and Mithras, and 
all the rest of them, fraternized in the 
most liberal intercourse. " If you have 
but a god, no matter who or what ; only 
do not interfere with your neighbors." 
And it is very possible that, upon the 
same terms, Christians might, for a time, 
have fared easier than they did. But 
the moment they taught men to turn 
from these vanities to serve the living- 
God, the worshippers of Baal, and Ju- 
piter, and Moloch, and the whole rabble 
of pagan deities, rushed upon them, and 
drenched the earth with their blood. So 
now : compliment my dogma, and I 
will compliment yours. "But let un- 
bending truth fall in with the confedera- 
cy, and accost the members of it with- 



20 Lijcrallty in Religion. 

out ceremony. Let her arraign the car- 
nality of one, the corruptness of another, 
and the unfaithfulness of a third. Let 
her deny, at once, the Christianity of all 
who reject the divinity and atonement 
of our Lord Jesus ; or who, admitting 
both, live without the practical influence 
of either ; and immediately the cry will 
be raised. " Bigot," " fanatic," will 
start from a hundred mouths ; and, short 
of open violence, as little mercy will be 
shown to wisdom's children by modern, 
as by ancient toleration. Instead, there- 
fore of a pure and effective benevolence, 
this liberality of the age is a mask drawn 
over the face of enmity to God's holiest 
truth, and to all who espouse it. That 
" love" which is " without dissimula- 
tion," wears no such guise. It consists 
in kind affections and offices. It can 
do men good without nattering their 
corruptions, or sanctifying their mis- 
takes. It is he " who converts a sin- 
ner from the error of his way," not he 
who treats it as harmless, that " shall 
save a soul from death, and shall hide a 
multitude of sins." Between the in- 
cessant agitations of dispute, and the ob- 
livious calm of indifference, there is a 



. Liberality in Religion, 2 % 

wide scope for the exercise of Chris- 
tian forbearance. 

But let those who desire not to be 
entrapped into a fatal security, beware 
how they listen to the siren song. Let 
them remember, that an air of affable- 
ness and magnanimity is often a pass- 
port for error, both speculative and prac- 
tical, to an undefinable extent. There 
is so much dignity in freedom from lit- 
tle prejudices, and so miTch flattery in 
the reputation of it, that generous minds 
are thrown off their guard by its very 
appearance. Impressions, slight at first, 
are deepened by repetition : advantages 
are imperceptibly gained over the stern- 
ness of truth, and the caution of virtue : 
and the head and the heart are perverted, 
under the seductive notion of overcom- 
ing prejudice. But one image is pre- 
sented to the eye, and that is liberality. 
Her features, her attitude, her voice, her 
weapons, and her attire, are always the 
same, Her broad mantle covers the 
approach of the fiend, till the treacherous 
blow be given, and " truth fall in the 
streets. ;? Certain it is, that such has 
been the ordinary course of those who 
have turned " away from the holy com- 



24 Meaning of Charity. 

is either wholly impossible, or argues a weak- 
ness of understanding ; which cannot be the 
object of approbation, nor consequently of im- 
itation. 

Let us therefore suppose, that this duty of 
forbearance, which indeed I take to be wholly 
distinct in its nature, is the charity so strongly 
recommended, and so highly applauded in 
scripture, and that it is. to be exercised with 
regard to the opinions of others. In that case 
it must have certain bounds, for the following 
reasons : 

1. If it were otherwise, we should then ei- 
ther want a meaning for many declarations 
and precepts in scripture ; or, which is worse, 
to perceive them to be evidently absurd and 
ill-founded. That I may not tire the reader, 
I shall not adduce the tenth part of what is 
said on this subject in scripture ; but must 
beg of him to weigh the following passages, 
and to make some reflections on their mani- 
fest purpose : Jucle v. 3, 4, "Beloved, when 
I gave ail diligence to write unto you of the 
common salvation, it v/as needful for me to 
write unto you, and exhort you, that ye should 
earnestly contend for the faith which was 
once delivered unto the saints. For there are 
certain men crept in unawares, who were be- 
fore of old ordained to this condemnation, un- 
godly men, turning the grace of our God into 
lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord 
God, and our Lord Jesus Christ." — Here I 
think is plainly a duty with regard to opinions 
altogether different from that of forbearance. 
The one requires us not so much as to judge 
our brethren ; the other requires us to con- 



Meaning of Charity. 25 

tend earnestly with them. The one supposes 
the trifling difference to be wholly buried ; 
the other implies, that it should be kept clear- 
ly in view, and all possible pains taken to sup- 
port the truth, and to refute the error. The 
one supposes entire peace and union ; the 
other implies a firm and resolute opposition, 
so as to come to no terms which imply con- 
sent or approbation. The phraseology through • 
the whole passage teaches us to interpret it as 
I have done ; " There are certain men," says 
he, " crept in unawares ;" plainly signifying, 
that if they had not crept in secretly, they 
would not, or ought not to have been suffered 
to come in openly. Now, if charity and for- 
bearance be the same thing, here are some 
persons described, whom we are not to for- 
bear, and consequently for whom we are to 
have no charity : therefore it must have som^ 
limitation. Let it be as extensive as you will, 
it is not boundless. 

Titus i. 10, 11, 13. " For there are many 
unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, espe- 
cially they of the circumcision : whose mouths 
must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, 
teaching things which they ought not, for fil- 
thy lucre's sake. — Wherefore, rebuke them 
sharply, that they may be sound in the faith." 
Nov/, let me ask any unprejudiced reader, 
whether sharp rebuke be not a very different 
thing from forbearance ? How can you re- 
buke those whom you may not so much as 
judge ? or why should you attempt to make 
them sound in the faith, if they are already re- 
ceived of God ? As it is expressed, Rom.xiv. 
5'. Besides, what is the meaning of subvert- 



26 Meaning of Charity. 

ing whole houses ? and of stopping the mouths 
of the false teachers, to prevent or remedy 
this subversion ? In the same epistle, chap, 
iii. 10. the apostle says, " A man that is an 
heretic, after the first and second admonition, 
reject." Does not this suppose*, that it is. pos- 
sible for a man to be a heretic ? Does not the 
apostle here ordain a sentence of expulsion to 
be passed against him, after the pains taken to 
reclaim him appear to be fruitless I It is 
plain, therefore, that- if charity be the same 
with forbearance, it must have limits ; for it 
every body must be forborne then certainly 
nobody can be expelled. 

I must not here pass by an astonishing in- 
terpretation put by some, and men of learning 
too, upon the following verse of the same 
chapter : " Knowing that he that is such, is 
subverted and sinneth, being condemned of 
himself;" that is, say some, no man is a her- 
etic in the sense of this passage, but who is 
self-condemned, or is acting contrary to his 
own conviction ; so that he must be rejected, 
not for the error of his judgment, but for the 
obstinacy and depravation of his heart. I do 
not remember to have seen any stronger in- 
stance of the power of prejudice, than giving 
such a sense to the word self-condemned. If 
any man can really conceive a case in his own 
mind, of a heretic obstinately persisting in 
his error, and suffering for it, in opposition 
to his own inward conviction, and at the same 
time this circumstance clearly ascertained as 
the foundation of his sentence, I wish he 
would teach me how to conceive it : at pres- 
ent it seems to me utterly impossible. If any 



Meaning of Charity, 27 

person thus speaks lies in hypocrisy, is it to 
be supposed, that he will confess it ? and if 
he do not confess, how is it possible to prove 
it ? The plain meaning of being condemned 
of himself, in this passage, is, that his errors 
are so contradictory to the other articles of 
his faith, such an abjuration of his former pro- 
fession, and generally tend so much to im- 
morality in practice, that he is condemned as 
it were out of his own mouth. 

In the second epistle of John, the apostle 
says, ver. 9, 10, 11. lt Whosoever transgress- 
eth,and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, 
hath not God : he that abideth in the doctrine 
of Christ, he hath both the Father and the 
Son. If there come any unto you, and bring 
not this doctrine, receive him not into your 
house ; neither bid him God speed : for he 
thatbiddeth him God speed, is partaker of his 
evil deeds." I shall not stay to examine nice- 
ly the import of not receiving such a one into 
our house, and not bidding him God speed. 
It is sufficient for my purpose, that no sense 
can be put upon it low enough to make it 
agreeable to the treatment we ought to give 
to our brethren whom we are forbidden to 
judge. These we are to receive, as Christ 
hath received them, and to keep the unity of 
the Spirit in the bond of peace. 

To all these I only add, without any reflec- 
tion upon it, the reproof of Christ to the 
church of Pergamos : Rev. ii. 14. " But I 
have a few things against thee, because thou 
hast there them that hold the doctrineof Bala- 
am, who taught Balac to cast a stumbling 
block before the children of Israel, . to eat 



28 Meaning of Charity. 

things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit 

fornication. So hast thou also them that hold 

the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I 

hate." 

2. If charity be the same with forbearance, 
it must have limits, or it would be the strong- 
est impeachment of divine wisdom and good- 
ness, in not giving marks sufficiently clear to 
distinguish truth from falsehood. If we are to 
entertain a favorable opinion of the sentiments 
and state of others, it must be entirely founded 
on the supposition, that they have inquired 
with honesty and impartiality ; and that they 
are not blinded by prejudice or corrupt pas- 
sions. This I suppose will be readily allow- 
ed ; because it is the usual way of speaking or 
writing on the subject. 'They maybe mis^ 
taken/ it is often said, ' but without their 
fault : they may have freely and impartially- 
inquired, and yet may, after all, think differ- 
ently with equal sincerity/ This, I contend, 
can only hold in matters of small moment, 
and in themselves of a doubtful nature ; and 
in these the observation is just, and corres- 
ponds with reason, scripture, and experience. 
But in truths of the highest moment, if there 
are any such at all, to suppose that men equal- 
ly sincere and impartial, may, notwithstand- 
ing, have sentiments directly opposite, seems 
to me an impeachment of divine wisdom. 
How can it be, unless the evidences for and 
against them, be pretty equally balanced ? 
How is the judgment determined at ail,but by 
a sort of compound ratio, to speak in the lan- 
guage of mathematicians, of the outward evi- 
dence, and the prepossession of the mind ■ 



Meaning of Charity. 29 

Strong prepossessions will account for any 
opinion, however absurd ; but if two persons 
of equal capacity, and equal integrity, draw 
opposite conclusions on any question, it must 
certainly arise from the doubtfulness of the 
question itself. Now, if there be any truths 
of moment not attended with sufficient evi- 
! \ dence, how can we acquit or justify the con- 
I duct of providence ? There does not seemte 
me to be any alternative ; but we must lay the 
blame either upon the evidence, or the mind ; 
that is to say, in other words, it must be put 
to the charge either of God or man. 

3. If chanty is the same thing with for- 
bearance, it must have some limits ; otherwise 
the value of truth itself is absolutely annihila- 
ted. If I am to believe a man in as safe a 
state, and as much accepted of God, in one op- 
inion as another, upon all subjects, it is plain, 
not only that every truth is of equal moment 
with another, but that truth and error are of 
equal value. This, I think, is indisputable ; 
for if it makes no difference, either in point 
of character or state, I see nothing else from 
which their value can be estimated. What 
then becomes of all the fine encomiums we 
have on the beauty, the excellence, the impor- 
tance of truth ? the necessity and benefit of 
freedom of inquiry? It would be much bet- 
ter to be satisfied with any opinions, be they 
what they will, than to give way to doubts and 
suspicions, to fatigue our mind% and vraste 
our time in long and difficult researches, If 
it be said, that they may be the same as to the 
sincerity of the inquirer, but different princi- 
ples may have different effects in practice- ; 



30 Meaning of Charity. 

this is yielding up the point in debate : for if 
one opinion leads to holiness, and another to 
wickedness, in practice, they can never be in 
the same state of safety, nor equally acceptable 
to God, who hold these opposite sentiments, 
Besides, it is common with the advocates for 
this mistaken sort of charity, in order the bet- 
ter to support their opinion, to deny this dif- 
ference in effect, and to slay, ' It is no matter 
what a man's opinions are, if his life be good.' 
Now, it is evident, that this assertion is ab- 
surd ; or rather the supposition is impossible, 
unless the influence of truth and falsehood up- 
on the life, be absolutely equal. Grant but 
the least superiority or advantage to one above 
the other, and the argument is destroyed ; for 
if truth be better than falsehood, it must be 
some matter what a man's opinions are, in or- 
der to his life's being good. How weak and 
inconsistent creatures are we I The very same 
persons who make the greatest stir about a 
pretended search after truth, and freedom of 
inquiry, will needs have it, that Christian 
charity implies, that all opinions are alike, and 
ought to be treated with equal respect : and 
then, to crown all, they give us the most hid- 
eous pictures of the terrible effects of super- 
stition- and certain religious sentiments which 
they are pleased to condemn. Alas ! Where 
is the charity then ? Are all opinions equal ? 
Is it no matter what a man's opinions are, if 
his life be good ? At last you have found ou£ 
some whose lives are ill by the impulse of 
their opinions. Certainly, charity, in the sense 
of forbearance or approbation, is not due to 
ihem, 



Meaning of Charity. 31 

4. If charity is the same with forbearance s 
it must have some limits ; because otherwise 
things would be carried to an extravagant 
length ; and such cases might be supposed as 
very few would be willing to admit, and in- 
deed I think no man can rationally admit. I 
might give a multitude of possible examples ; 
but, for the greater satisfaction of the reader? 
shall only mention a few that are real. 

(1) Within the Christian church, there are 
not only different, but opposite opinions, and 
mutually destructive of each other. Those 
who kold them, on each side, not only to say, 
but think, that their adversaries are guilty of 
impiety and blasphemy. Let us take for in- 
stance, the Calvinists and Socinians. Read 
the writings of the first, and you will see, that 
they consider their adversaries as taking a- 
way the very foundation of the gospel, deny- 
ing the only Lord God that bought them, and 
as guilty of vile idolatry in giving divine wor- 
ship to one whom they believe to be a crea- 
ture. Again if you read the writings of the 
last, you will find them charging their adver- 
saries with blasphemy of the most horrible 
nature, and not only making a god different 
from the true God, but such a one as is more 
cruel and vindictive than the very devils. — ■ 
Now, I desire to know how the one of these 
sorts of persons can have a favorable opinion 
of the state and sentiments of the opposite 
without renouncing their town ? I do freely ac- 
knowledge, as I have formerly done, that I 
never did esteem the Socinians to be Christians ; 
and yet find nothing more easy, or indeed 
more necessary, than to have charity for them, 



32 Meaning of Charity. 

irr what I take to be the scriptnre sense of that 
word. Bur in the modern sense it appears to 
me utterly impossible. For the very same 
reason, if any who had embraced these princi- 
ples should pretend, that he had such charity 
for me, as to esteem and receive me as a faith- 
ful minister of Christ, I would consider it as a 
profession altogether hypocritical, or that he 
did not believe a word of his own system. The 
truth is, I cannot help thinking, from the man- 
ner of conducting theological cnntroversies, 
that it is very common for many to plead for 
that charity to themselves which they never 
give to their adversaries ; while the power of 
prejudice hinders them from observing the 
inconsistency between their reasoning and 
practice. 

(2.) Those who deny and oppose the gos- 
pel altogether, have just the same title to our 
charity, and we are obliged to believe, that 
they are honest and impartial inquirers, and 
therefore accepted of God. Now, if there be 
any thing in the world clear from scripture, it 
is, that we are not to approve or receive such 
persons ; that they are not the objects of for- 
bearance ; and, by consequence, not of that 
charity that consists in forbearance : on the 
contrary, the zeal and activity of the apostles 
was wholly employed in bringing unbelievers 
to the knowledge and confession of the truth ; 
for which they deserve very little praise, if 
their state was safe, and their character unex- 
ceptionable, before. And as to persons among 
us denying the gospel, after examination, I 
do not see how any person can think them ira- 



Meaning of Charity, 33 

partial in rejecting it, without a very poor 
opinion of the evidence for receiving it. 
" (3) Even m point of morals, there have been, 
and are at this time, opinions so very gross ? 
that few will look upon the state of those who 
hold them safe ; and yet if forbearance is 
charity, and the charity is unlimited, they 
must also be taken in. There have been sev* 
eral, who certainly" were sincerely of opinion, 
that fornication and other uncleanness was 
lawful. So great a man as David Hume, Esq. 
has adopted a sentence from a French writer ; 
" Female infidelity, when it is known, is a 
small matter ; and when it is not known, it is 
nothing, " — The very same writer seems also 
either to defend or greatly to alleviate, unnat- 
ural lust. And many highwaymen have actu- 
ally reasoned themselves into an opinion of 
the lawfulness of robbery, by alleging, that 
God never made the world with this view, that 
some should have too much and others should 
starve; and therefore they had a right to a 
share, and might levy it wherever they could 
find it. The truth is, there are more of these 
gross and erroneous opinions than many are 
aware of ; for men are seldom at ease on the 
commission of sin, till they have found some 
way to satisfy their own minds, by wrong prin- 
ciples.— «Wel3 t are we to think all these hon- 
est and impartial inquirers, and to have char- 
ity for them in the sense so often mentioned ? 
-I imagine some will at last stop short, and say, 
there is a distinction to be made ; these opin- 
ions are formed by the influence of prejudice, 
and the bias of corrupt affections. Here then 
your charity fails, and you have set limits to 



34 Meaning of Charity. 

your forbearance ; or rather you have given 
up the cause ; for all false opinions arise from 
the bias of corrupt affections. The falacy of 
the whole arguments on this subject lies in 
confounding two things very different, viz. a 
man's being truly of an opinion, and his being 
so upon fair and unprejudiced inquiry. A 
train of reasoning carried on, which is built 
upon the last of these suppositions, and appli- 
ed to cases where only the first takes place. 
Perhaps some may choose to say, as to the case 
of immoral opinions, that men are not to be 
disapproved or condemned for the opinion in 
itself, but for presuming to act in consequence 
of it. To which I answer, That if any man 
will prove the innocence of forming such opin- 
ions, I will undertake to prove, with at least 
equal evidence, the obligation that lies upon 
every one so persuaded, to act according to 
Lis light. 

5. In the last place, To suppose that char- 
ity is the same thing with forbearance, and 
yet that it is unlimited, is self-contradictory, 
and impossible, in many instances, to be put 
in practice. True Christian charity being the 
indispensable duty of all, must at least be pos- 
sible to all, and consistent with every other 
duty. Now, to believe the safety of the state, 
or the goodness of the character of many per- 
sons for whom charity is pleaded, may be to 
some absolutely impossible. They may have 
a conviction of the contrary in their judgment. 
They may think, that the scripture clearly 
and explicitly commands them to separate from 
such people, to oppose and detest their er- 
rors j and surely there are many much more 



Meaning of Charity. 35 

absurd and groundless opinions truly enter- 
tained. What then shall they do ? The«crip- 
ture commands'them to contend with errone- 
ous persons ; and if they do, they are guilty 
of a breach of charity, one of the most essen- 
tial of all gospel duties ; for the apostle tells 
usj u Though I speak with the tongue of men 
and angels, and have not charity, I am become 
as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." 

Thus, I hope it has been proved, to the sat- 
isfaction of all impartial persons, that if char- 
ity, in scripture, is the same thing with that 
forbearance we owe to others who differ from 
us, it must have some bounds, and be praise or 
blame-worthy, according to the cases in which 
it is exercised. If I be asked, Who shall state 
the bounds beyond which it is not to extend I 
I answer, Every one for himself, according to 
the best of his own judgment. Some perhaps 
will contend with, or judge others, for things 
in which they ought to forbear them ; but 
many others will carry their forbearance too 
far, and retain erroneous or vicious persons in 
their society, when they ought to expel them. 
For this there is no remedy, as it is the conse- 
quence of the weakness of human nature, and 
no way different from what happens as to ev- 
ery duty incumbent on us as men or Christ- 
ians. 

II. Let us now come to the second part of 
this discourse, and consider what reason there 
is to believe, that charity in scripture, is duty 
altogether distinct from forbearance, and 
founded on distinct principles. 

One general consideration will go nigh to 
prove this of itself, viz. That forbearance, as 



36' Meaning of Charity. 

lias been shewn in the preceding pages, hath 
limits, beyond which it is cujpable ; whereas 
charity hath none, at least as to its object. 
There is no person or character that can he 
conceived, for which we are allowed to be 
without charity. With respect to forbear- 
ance, the object of it is clearly pointed out in 
the passages where it is spoken of, and is the 
difference of opinion as to smaller matters, viz, 
the lawfulness or unlawfulness of meats and 
drinks, and whether certain days were holy 
or common. But there is no passage in which 1 
charity is spoken of, that gives the least hint, 
or indeed that leaves room to suppose that it 
hath any limits as to its object. Charity, we 
are told, is " the end," or sum, " of the com- 
mandment/' And indeed it is the same thing 
with love, which is the fulfilling cf the law. 
And in the explication which our Lord gives 
of the sum of the second table of the law, in 
•answer to that question, Who is my neighbor? 
he plainly teaches us by the parable of the Sa- 
maritan, that all men are our neighbors. 
There was a great opposition, in point of re- 
ligion, between the Jews and Samaritans ; 
yet he shews plainly, that this ought not to ob- 
struct the exercise cf charily, in the true sense 
of that word. FGr this reason, I think it high- 
ly probable, that forbearance is different from 
charity ; the one points out our duty to our 
fellow Christians in certain circumstances* 
and the other includes our duty to our fellow 
creatures at all times. 

This will be confirmed, by reflecting that 
the word which, in some places, is translated 
charity) is the same, in ail other passages 



Meaning of Charity. 37 

without variation in any one of them, with that 
which is translated love. Agajie is the New 
Testament word for charity , which, as it is 
generally translated lov'e,"so I do not see the 
least reason for altering the translation, in 
those places where chanty is substituted in 
its room. Charity then is love ; that is to say, 
it is a sincere and fervent affection to others, 
and a desire of their welfare, temporal and 
eternal. This not only may consist with, but 
of itself naturally produces, the strongest ab- 
horrence of their wicked principles, and the 
deepest concern for their dangerous state. 
There is a great affinity between the senti- 
ments we ought to entertain with regard to 
error and vice. Our love to vicious persons 
ought not to carry in it any approbation or in- 
dulgence of their vices, and far less any belief 
of the safety of their state ; but an earnest 
concern to bring about their reformation. In 
.the same manner, a sincere and fervent char- 
ity for erroneous persons, does not imply any 
approbation of their opinions, or supposition of 
their consistency with soundness in the faith, 
but an earnest desire to recover them, if pos- 
sible, from their unhappy delusion. Nay, 
though a man be so narrow-minded, as to 
judge those whom he ought to forbear, it may, 
very possibly, be attended with no breach of 
charity ; because there may be as much love 
to his neighbor in that person's heart, and as 
much concern for his welfare, as if he had seen 
more clearly his own mistake. The apostle 
Paul calls these weak persons, and ascribes 
their conduct to the imperfections of -their 
judgment. It was the strong, or those who 
4 



8 8 Meaning of Charity. 

had more* knowledge, that he blamed, as not 
walking charitably, when they would not ab- 
stain from meat, to prevent their brethren's 
offense. 

It will be an additional confirmation of this 
meaning of charity, that it makes the several 
duties of Christians at once clear and intelligi- 
ble, and consistent one with another, by leav- 
ing to each its full scope, and its proper ob- 
ject. If w~e take charity in the sense which I 
have rejected, there will be a continual oppo- 
sition between zeal and charity ; and in pro- 
portion as you increase in any one of them, 
you must necessarily fail in the other. And 
indeed this seems to be verified in experience ; 
for those who espouse this sort of charity, do 
frequently fall into so cool a state in point of 
zeal, that they give themselves little trouble, 
either in instructing the ignorant, or reproving 
the vicious ; and are not backward in stigma- 
tizing those, as narrow-minded and uncharita- 
ble, who do. But if we take charity for un- 
feigned love, then, instead of opposition, there 
is the most perfect harmony between one duty 
and another. So far from hindering, or even 
limiting each other in their exercise, they 
strengthen each other in principle, and direct 
each other in their application. — The more 
fervent love I have for my fellow creatures 
and my fellow christians, it will but excite my 
zeal to promote their benefit, by endeavoring 
to convince them of any dangerous mistake, and 
deliver them from the dominion of every vic- 
ious practice. At the same time this love will 
naturally produce forbearance, where it is law- 
ful and proper ; because* if I love any person sin- 



Meaning of Charity. 39* 

cerely, I will judge of him candidly, and not impute 
any bad sentiment or practice to him without necessity. 
It will prevent us from interfering 1 with others where 
we ought not, and will urge us to activity and diligence 
where the case seems really to call for it. 

This subject may be well illustrated by parental 
affection, when it is both strong in its principle, and 
well directed in its exercise. It will certainly prevent 
a parent from judging hardly of his children, or being 
easily incensed against them, on wrong or doutful in- 
formation : but it will be so far from making him think 
favorably of their mistakes, either in principle or prac- 
tice, that the more tender his love, the greater his 
concern to prevent their being misled, or to recover 
them if they have gone astray. Examples to be sure 
there are many, of a sort of love in parents to their 
children, that operates like the false charity I am now 
pleading against, making them blind to their failings, 
and even partial to their crimes : but I think it must 
be allowed, that all such partiality and indulgence is 
a weakness, instead of a virtue, in the parent, and is 
commonly a curse, instead of a blessing, to the child. 
To have just apprehensions of the several duties of 
the Christian life, we must always consider their re- 
lation to, and dependance upon one another. There 
are some sins opposite to, and destructive of each 
other ; but there is no truly good disposition, that is 
not perfectly consistent with, or rather that does not 
improve and strengthen every other. It is remarka- 
ble, that in scripture, the duties of reproof and cor- 
rection are frequently attributed to love as their prin- 
ciple, not only in God, but in man : " Whom the 
Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son 
whom he receiveth." — " He that spareth the rod, 
hateth his son ; but he that loveth him, chasteneth 
him betimes." — " Thoushalt not hate thy neighbor in 
thy heart ; but shalt in any wise rebuke him, and not 
suffer sin upon him." 

Upon the whole, since this interpretation of chari- 
ty is not only most agreeable to scripture, but most 
consistent with itself, and with every other branch of 
the Christian character, I hope it will be received, 
at least so far as to lessen the cry of uncharitableness 
against those who, from the united principles of love 



46 Meaning of Charity. 

to God and man, think themselves obliged to opposs 
the progress of gross error. I plead for this only 
•when they make use of just and lawful means, and 
act in a manner becoming Christians, in meekness in- 
structing those that oppose themselves. For though 
I have shewn, that true charity is as favorable to zeal 
as to forbearance, and to both alike in their proper 
place, I am sensible that there may be zeal where 
there is little or no charity ; and, in that case, it will 
shew itself in " wrath, strife, seditions, heresies." 
This happens chiefly, when a weak person who judges 
rashly, is also of an envious or malicious disposi- 
tion. The first of these may be sometimes without 
the other ; they may, however, also be joined in the 
same person ; and then it will certainly be attended* 
with " confusion, and every evil Work." But when a 
deep sense of the evil of departing from the faith to 
the persons themselves, and the danger of corrupt 
doctrine infecting the whole lump, induces any to 
stand up in defense offthe truth, to oppose the intro- 
duction of erroneous teachers, or to attempt the ex- 
pulsion of those who have crept in unawares ; let 
them be called unreasonable if you please, and let 
their mistake be pointed out, but I beg that they may 
not be abused and vilified as uncharitable. The rea- 
son of my request is, that it is more than probable 
they do this from a strong conviction, that they are 
obliged to it by the express command of Christ. I 
declare this to be my own persuasion, after the most 
impartial search of the scriptures of which I was 
capable ; and certainly it is at least possible, that we 
may have, notwithstanding, a fervent love to our 
brethren, and a desire of their welfare ; We may 
love them as men, even when we cannot judge them 
to be saints ; and we may love them as Christians, 
even when we think they are in many things to be 
blamed ; nay, I hope we may heartily forgive them 
as enemies, notwithstanding all their bitterness and 
rancor against us. But if, after all, this request can- 
not be obtained ; if we cannot alter our judgment, 
and they will still insist that we are therefore without 
charity, that is to say, without Christianity ; they must 
confess, that here is one opinion which they will not 
tolerate, and to which, in their own sense, no charity 
is due. — bnp. 



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